The Water Resources Department (WRD) plans to build a check dam and reconstruct dilapidated storage structures upstream of the Poondi reservoir in Tiruvallur to store floodwater and enhance groundwater recharge.
It is preparing estimates to construct another check dam across the Nagari river at Gulur, near Tiruttani, as a measure to save floodwater. This will be the fourth check dam to be built across the river. Officials of the WRD said work was under way to build a check dam at Illupur, near Tiruttani, at a cost of ₹17.6 crore. The proposed check dam will come up at Gulur village, located 6 km downstream of Illupur. Both areas are located upstream of the Poondi reservoir.
As areas around Gulur are dry, the 200-metre-long and 2-metre-high check dam will help store about 20 million cubic feet (mcft) of water in the river. “We expect the storage structure to recharge groundwater wells in at least four villages, including Gulur and Karani Nizampet, and help irrigation and drinking water needs. The river will have a flow for two more months after the monsoon,” an official said. The project will be taken up at a cost of ₹15 crore.
Similarly, the department plans to rebuild two dilapidated storage structures across a channel that links surplus water from different waterbodies, including the Senji Panapakkam tank, to the Poondi reservoir.
The check dams at Thirupachur and Kaivandur across the supply channel are brick masonry structures built around 50-60 years ago. Water stored in the Thirupachur check dam is also diverted to tanks in Thirupachur and Pullarambakkam villages. The new ₹5 crore facility will be 60 metre in length and 1.8 metre in height, and will be able to store 6 mcft of floodwater. The surplus from here will travel for another km and be stored in the Kaivandur check dam, which is 5 km upstream of the Poondi reservoir.
Once the Kaivandur check dam is reconstructed, it will cater to the irrigation needs of the surrounding villages and also feed tanks in Siruvanur. The two projects are estimated to cost a total of ₹10 crore.
